"Greetings, everybody. My apologies for not being able to teach for the past two days. I encountered some problems when condensing elements, and the academy teachers assisted me in my cultivation. I didn't recover until yesterday," Long Dangdang said calmly.
"An assessment is imminent. I've been mulling over it these past few days, and I believe all of you have been doing the same, thinking about how to pass it. Therefore, I'm sure you've also come to realize that this exam will be quite challenging for us, the mages class. Under normal circumstances, we might not even stand a chance to pass."
At these words, the class became slightly chaotic. Whispers spread among the students.
"All right, quiet down, let the class representative speak," Si Yu exerted some spiritual power, bringing about a sense of intimidation.
When everyone was quiet, Long Dangdang continued, "Not only us, but also all fifteen classes of the three-specialization magic would struggle to perform well in this exam. The assessment is inherently unfair to us. Those from the 3-specialization close combat have strong bodies due to their outer spiritual power, even if they haven't learned their professional skills and knowledge yet, their individual strength far exceeds our physically weak magic professionals. For most of us, it's hard enough to cast even a basic spell, let alone score points."
At this point, most students, including a few boys who were originally antagonistic towards him, nodded unconsciously. They too had thought of this and were discontented with the upcoming exam as a result.
"Indeed, it's unfair. However, isn't this also a test from the academy? It's well known that as mages, our future will possess the strongest attack power among all professions. It may seem unfair now, but in a few years, the same assessment will give us the upper hand. My guess is that the academy aims for overall fairness, instead of fairness at every moment. So, the better our performance under such circumstances, the more it highlights our excellence and the more resources the academy will allocate to us in terms of teaching. Therefore, the first thing I hope is that you all won't give up on this exam mentally and that you hold firm determination to pass it."
"What's the use of being determined? We can't even use magic," a boy in the front row retorted.
Long Dangdang nodded, and said, "Let's move on to the solutions."
"First, I'd like everyone to tell me who can cast a spell, any spell will do. Students who can use magic, please stand up." He then glanced at his peers.
Si Yu looked at Long Dangdang and smiled slightly on the side. She was satisfied with his ability to control the atmosphere in the classroom. Unconsciously, the mood of the entire class was changed by him.
True to its reputation, Mages Class One was indeed home to the best first-year magic students. Eight students stood up. It's only been a week since the start of school, yet eight of them, be it due to their family background or sheer talent, were able to use magic already.
To Long Dangdang's embarrassment, among the eight students who stood up, six had given him their notebooks before, this included his deskmate, Ai Xia.
"Please tell me which spells you can use now, and how many times," he asked.
"Small fireball! I can use it three times in a row, maybe more if I rest."
"Water bullet, four times."
"Breakthrough Boulder, four times."
"Wind Blade, three times," Ai Xia whispered when it was her turn.
She has an affinity for the wind element? Looking at her delicate and pretty face, Long Dangdang nodded instinctively. He hadn't really been to school that much since it started, so the only person he was familiar with here was his deskmate.
The eight students each listed the spells they could use. Among them, a student who was an affinity for the light element could only use the lighting spell. The remaining seven were all basic spells with weak destructive powers.
"Okay, everyone, please sit."
Long Dangdang let the eight students sit down, and continued, "In this exam, I believe all classes will participate together as a unit, because everyone's individual strength is too small. However, even so, it's still difficult for us—the magic professionals, we might not even be able to withstand a single Charge from a knight or a warrior. My suggestion is to find allies. We should collaborate with the close-combat classes to achieve better results."
Another student asked, "Would the close-combat classes be willing to work with us? Aren't they afraid that we might drag them down?"
Long Dangdang replied, "Today's burden is tomorrow's firepower. I will work hard to convince them. They help us pass the exam today, and before long, when each of us can use magic and possess decent destructive power, we will become their most reliable allies."
The student was one of the eight who could use magic. He frowned and said, "But don't forget, you won't be with us after the exam begins. Also, do you have a target? Who are you planning to persuade to form the alliance with us?"
Long Dangdang responded, "Of course, Knights Class One. My younger brother is the class representative."
Upon hearing this, the students seemed quite interested. Just like how they were the excellent magic students on their side, the Knights Class One was home to the best knights-to-be. It was a fact that the Knights Temple ranked number one among all temples.